+Before Beyonce there was Dalida.+

This exotic beauty of Italian descent and born in Cairo, Egypt rose to international fame throughout the 1960s and all the way to her suicide in the 1980s. A suicide over a broken heart only days after appearing in television interviews perfectly normal…love was her worst enemy in life.

She sold upwards of 140 million albums; Beyonce has sold 17 million solo, and 17 million with Destiny’s Child which really puts it into perspective (although, our girl Rihanna has sold upwards of 230 million records, so . . . ).

Whatever it ends up being, we have been itching for another psychological thriller a la Black Swan and perhaps Mother! can truly deliver! Perhaps it will even deliver J-Law her second Oscar? Only time will tell…

You know we love linking {present} day visuals to the {past}, so we couldn’t help but perceive the remarkable similarities to the aesthetic of sure-fire style diva Frida Kahlo!

There’s some kind of resemblance….the heart, the botanicals, even the gore! So Frida!

The Mother! poster was designed by Taiwanese artist James Jean. Mother! opens in theatres October 13, 2017 – so stay tuned!

Who knows what kind of musings this film will expose the world to . . .

Frida Kahlo by Nikolas Muray

{circa. 1939}

“At the end of the day, we can endure much more than we think we can.”

This is a short clip from Terrence Malick’s “The Thin Red Line” which never ceases to inspire and engage the mind and soul with its thoughtful narration and invigorating visuals that take the viewer through the complex voyage of a soldier to war hidden by the beauty of “paradise“. . .

It really must have been something to find yourself in a strange new world, another Earth far away from the hometown you left months before. You might never want to leave. You might hope to be left on a deserted island for the rest of your days; left alone by the complications of society.

Malick does a great job at creating this world, and you can get an even cooler glimpse into this world by digging into the world of vintage vernacular.

Ask your grandparents and they probably have vintage snapshots to share with you, or dig through the bins of them at your local Flea Market or antique store. There are treasures to find. These memories of some lost paradise always seem to be like faded remnants of some beautiful black and white dream. . .

Here’s a few to quench your thirst! Soak it up, and bring this lost paradise with you wherever you go.

Why should I be afraid to die? I belong to you. If I go first, I’ll wait for you there. On the other side of the dark waters.
Be with me now.

In the spirit of the dunes we thought this timeless classic could definitely coincide. . .

This is an ode to Black Sabbath, the mystical heavy blues rockers from Birmingham who knew just the way to make their music crawl.

With the use of the occult and horror-inspired lyrics, and one-of-a-kind 1970s rock ‘n’ roll bohemian swag, we are definitely feeling a brotherhood with this unique quartet!

So let your spirit float to this one, kids. It is sure to take you somewhere…

Sincerely,

{theEye}

+

Pictures loaded by Graham Young, Birmingham Mail. The first ever picture taken of Black Sabbath taken in 1968 of Tony Iommi, Ozzy Osbourne, Geezer Butler, Bill Ward, on a bank of grass close to Portland Road, Edgbaston. One hundred prints have been made at £495 each. Jim Simpson says: “If any one band can claim to be the originators of Heavy Metal, then that band is Black Sabbath. Strangely, Heavy Metal was not a term used in those days, though Sabbath certainly prided themselves on being heavier than any of their so-called rivals. In fact, their early publicity claimed, Black Sabbath, the Heaviest Band Around. Makes Led Zeppelin sound like a kindergarten house band. Quite how the Sabs changed from being a perfectly good blues band into the musical phenomenon that we all know and love is shrouded in mystery. It all started with Geezer Butler who contributed the bands name as well as many of the songs. Their music developed naturally from then and its hard to indentify exactly what directly preceded it. Hendrix, yes, to a limited extent, but that only partly explains it. Whatever, Black Sabbath are THE Birmingham Rock Band. Ask yourself this. Who is the worlds most famous Brummie? Without doubt, its Ozzy. Also loaded: Jim Simpson at the private launch of Jim Simpson – A Photography Retrospective, an exhibition at Havill & Travis showcasing Jim’s extraordinary collection of photographs from of pop, rock and blues stars from the 1960s. Jim was the first manager of Ozzy Osbourne and Black Sabbath. He has run Big Bear Records in Edgbaston for 46 years (to 2014) and founded the 30-year-old Birmingham International Jazz Festival in 1984. Havill & Travis at 14 Lonsdale Road, Harborne, Birmingham B17 9RA. Tel 0121 427 5763. http://www.havillandtravis.com The gallery is a partnership between fiends Dave Travis (left), ex rock photographer turned concert promoter and Mission Print founder Gerv Harvill. Pictures loaded by Graham Young, Birmingham Mail.

+KNIGHTS OF THE SANDCASTLE +

There once was a mysterious band of knights who roamed and raved their days and nights along the banks of the cool dark waters. Young and wild, they howled at the moon like the wolves, and on the clear days when the sun seemed to sparkle like diamonds on their faces, they stood sullen like statues of antiquity before cawing and cooing outrageously to their peers.

They sat watching the crowd waves roar; the boardwalk full of walking visitors, strange and new from far away places, that would all turn away in disdain from the boys of summer, sensing somehow their mighty position above it all . . .

They weren’t there for the sights and sounds, instead vying for an order of things far from the distressing quarrels of everyday society.

Simple positions shared amongst them all. One assigned to watch, another to distribute, another to discover, and the rest to play by the rules. No one over stepped a turn at the bottle, for each one knew that their last could be any day. Neville, one of the leaders, would say, ‘Never shy from your true colours’ and these they would display with unbroken pride.

Your honour was earned by the friendships you garnered and gathered.

Some say they had magic on their sides; magic powers taken from the ages, used to ensure their place along the sand dunes. Others say they made friends easily, but were actually ghosts playing games on the common folk.

Only one place in the world for them. A sacred fellowship that haunts us all to this day . . .

I like to imagine seeing them there every time I go back to the seaside. Guarding their little corner of the Earth, and protecting the small sliver of paradise they managed to claim as their own.

Sometimes I can hear them sing their favourite tune; a memory that wavers from faded dream to brilliant exuberance.

It was a familiar one made their own by one of their musically gifted initiates –

While not all the gentlemen seen in this series have surf boards in their hands, they all undeniably possess that wicked spirit of the surf.

Spontaneous, effervescent, and wild like the waves, these are men of the past who have found sanctuary in the beauty of the ocean, and have used its energy to conjure an unbeatable swag, and undeniable attitude.

We love looking through what people wore, and especially with swimwear, not much has changed. Whether shorts or speedos, the look and style of these basics can still be found today.

And while we don’t wear the one-piece suits anymore, or have to swim with tank tops; these looks are more and more interesting and intriguing. There is some unique stuff there that just needs to come back (striped one-piece, graphic swim tanks) into play!

Especially with today’s climate, always drifting back to the past for inspiration, I’m sure we’ll be seeing more of these influences in the mix in coming years. If not, we’ll just have to take it on ourselves. Either way – it’s happening.

Check out the amazing pictures we’ve found for you all to get in the swing of Surf, and the attitude that makes it timeless beyond the bleached blonde hair and tubular moods we automatically associate with this lifestyle.

So what do you think? Have things changed that much? There’s no time value on fun in the sun, that’s for sure.

Summer is at its peak, and its time to embrace the ultimate piece for the summer. . . .the Hawaiian Shirt. For some reason, this idea makes some people cringe, but over the course of this post you will see the innate beauty and wonder that is the Hawaiian Shirt.

The Case for Hawaiian Shirts really began when I was 8 years old and my mother brought home a Hawaiian shirt for me from her trip to Hawaii. I had begged her to grab me one while she was touring the islands for work. Seemed to me like the coolest thing!

It was a wicked print, nothing too crazy, pretty much an example of a classic Hawaiian shirt.

I remember my locker neighbour saying: “Whats wrong with you?”

“WHAT’S WRONG WITH YOU?!” is what I wanted to say, but I just shrugged and laughed her aside. She didn’t even have a sense about her as she was herself wearing something completely typical of the girls in my classes around these times…

She just couldn’t appreciate it the way I did. For me, it made me feel the most ahead of the game. I was different than the rest, and that’s always a good thing. For me, there’s just no doubting a really great Hawaiian Shirt.

{Donna Reed + Montgomery Clift, “From Here to Eternity” [1953]. }

{Michael Pitt for Prada S/S 2012 by David Sims}

Lately there’s been a huge influx of Hawaiian and tropical shirts in both runway shows and magazine editorials – it seems the world is finally catching on and getting a little more in tuned with not just my drift, but the truth of the whole matter. Open up any mens fashion magazine and you will find them littered in the colourful graphics.

The case for Hawaiian and Tropical print shirts is that they are as much a classic staple in ones wardrobe as other pieces heralded as being part of our sartorial lineage.

There is plenty of mythology revolving around the the true origin of the Aloha shirt (as they are also called) that range from birth in the Philipines to the islands of Samoa. Until the early 18th century, kapa was the main currency of many islands of the South Pacific. Kapa was a simple patterned cloth found in the South Pacific made from pounding and dyeing the bark of a mulberry tree. These prints later made a splash again in the 1950s. However, it is safe to accredit much of why we still sport and wear these styles to the craftsmanship and entrepreneurial efforts of one, Musa-Shiya the Shirtmaker. Throughout the 1920s and 30s, Musa-Shiya was one of the top Japanese tailors in Honolulu, who profited from his made-to-order custom silk shirts made with colourful and bright Japanese fabrics with Western-style tailoring.

These shirts helped tourists visiting the island make that final transformation to truly being on vacation, taking it easy, and saying goodbye to the stresses of the mainland. Forget your troubles, come on be happy! Soon after other Japanese tailors were doing the same, and quickly the demand for these tailored tropical refuges only began to soar. The 1953 film, “From Here to Eternity” would pretty much seal the deal with stars such as Burt Lancaster, Montgomery Clift, and even Frank Sinatra sporting the casual cuts of florals and tropical sunsets.

+ + +

From here on out, it pretty much has become the go-to expression of ease. Picking the right pattern is about 90% of the magic. There must be literally thousands, if not millions of different Aloha prints floating around in this world, and not all of them good. The key is equal parts colour as it is pattern – make sure both are really slamming. Compromise on this and you could really fall flat.

FIT would be another major point. So make sure it fits to your liking, or get it altered to fit your needs. Alteration is often the key to vintage, so if you haven’t already, be sure to check your local yellow pages for tailors or alterers in your neighbourhood. They will be happy to oblige, and you’d be surprised at how cheap it can be.

If you’re feeling a little more lax and party you may want to embrace some volume (think Sean Penn as Spicoli from Fast Times, or Johnny Depp in Fear & Loathing) or you can keep the cut classic and simple with a bit more of a tailored look to emulate classic stars like Clift, Sinatra, or Delon. Either way – you’re pretty much laughing …

And just in case you’re unsure, check out our pics of style stunning inspiration that ranges from the {PAST} to {PRESENT}. So take a look, and decide your {FUTURE}…it’s calling! All year round, these shirts takes you where you want to go! It’s time to declare the Hawaiian Shirt an equally valuable piece of everyone’s wardrobe.

It’s a defining piece with the magical ability to transport us from our everyday, and for those dedicated followers of fashion these pieces are definitely gaining visibility.

This is what I’m saying!

If you don’t look back, you can never go forward!

So hopefully you appreciate this menagerie of the exotic and wild! Check out The Vintage Hawaiian Shirt for more history, and a look at the web’s most impressive collection of them! Don’t be stuck staring at your everyday checks, plaids, and plain…carry on the {TRADITION} and accelerate the past!

Make sure you also check out the E.O.F. {SHOP}! We are stocking up more and more fashion forward pieces from our collected history so make sure to check it out!

Canada is infamous for its cold weather, but we were shocked to wake up to snowfall in April this morning! Needles to say, it had us yearning for those days of blissful sunshine and relaxing on the beach.

Sometimes we use inspiration to invoke a certain spirit to amp up our day, but on days like this, inspiration can be used to transport oneself to new worlds. In our case, we were looking for much hotter destinations to take us away from this bitter cold.

This being said, we easily found ourselves taken away to the beach, and who better to spend a day at the beach with than the impenetrable, secret agent, 007 himself – Bond. James Bond.

And if you’re friends with Bond, you’re likely to rub shoulders and elbows (maybe more) with any number of his beautiful beach bunny sweethearts. But don’t get too cozy in the sand just yet. Some of these beach bod bombshells are not to be trusted, and some of them have a bark that’s worse than their bite. So maybe best to just admire from the distance and let Bond do the dirty work . . .

From Honey Rider to Agent XXX, Bond has had more than his handful of beautiful women, which could account for his own impeccable sense of style. He is a man that knows it pays to look your best!

So enough chit-chat! Feel the sand between your toes, and lets hit the waves!

These guys are legends, and their music echoes like the voice of a lost memory. Dreams, and fantasy, illusion, and grandeur – these are all summoned by their music. Formed in 1971, Roxy Music lives on today as one of the most popular bands there have ever been, and were even honoured by Rolling Stone Magazine as one of the “Immortal” in a list of their 100 Greatest Artists of All Time.

We’d have to go ahead, and add them to our Best-Dressed Artists of All Time list with their wild nod to the past injected with the blinding buzz of Glam Rock England. We included a few pictures of these Idols, and were hoping the song be a great way to settle down into the night.

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NOTE FROM THE EDITOR

The Eye of Faith {Vintage} is a brand dedicated to integrating time traveled wisdom from the {past} with the {present} to help shape the {future}. It is an age old symbol of believing in oneself, and having faith in your dreams. No longer must we be lost. We are a burgeoning society dedicated to an alternative to the purchase of affordable fashion forward apparel, accessories, and home decor. We also provide design services and consultation, as well as costume and styling. At our core, we are a source of inspiration and musing.
Please enjoy your time here.
If you have any questions, please email the.eye.of.faith@gmail.com